


Good

by SLWalker



Category: due South
Genre: Character Study, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-13
Updated: 2014-03-13
Packaged: 2018-01-15 15:15:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1309492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SLWalker/pseuds/SLWalker
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for seascribe; Ray Vecchio and his Riv, and what came before.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Good

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Seascribe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Seascribe/gifts).



It was the guy up the road who owned a Riv like the one Ray would eventually own, except it wasn’t green and that was back when it definitely wasn’t one of the only ones like it left, but even so, the car gleaming in the sun after it had been washed off drew Ray’s eyes, and Ray’s attention drew the man’s eyes, and then the man paid him after that, every weekend, to wash the car for him.

In a world of big men and big fists, the easy going nature of this guy, trusting some punk kid with a deadbeat old man to wash his car, was so much bigger than that guy probably coulda guessed.

Ray wasn’t even in it for the money, not really; he liked the change and he used it for penny candy or marbles or other little things, hoarding it whenever he could to make it last the whole week, but he wasn’t in it for the change. He was in it ‘cause the car was beautiful and he took pride in making it shine, and he was in it ‘cause at the end when he got his loose change, the big guy with the big hand used that hand to ruffle his hair and tell him he did good, instead of close it into a fist and tell him nothing he could do was good.

The guy eventually sold that Riv, but Ray never forgot, not even when he was a nonchalant teenager, not even when he was a struggling young adult, not even when he was a married man, so yeah, when he saw that Riv for sale, he remembered the summer sun and the beautiful car and the big hand on his head telling him he did good and he withdrew their savings and bought it.

It was only a symptom of his failing marriage, both him buying it and Ange’s reaction to it, but even later on when he’s burned out and divorced and feels like he can’t possibly deal with anything else, he can get into that seat and look over the gleaming paint of the hood of his Riv and remember that once, once long ago, he did good.


End file.
